


Carpe Diem

by Jaymarie102



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Betrayal, Dark but not Evil Harry, Dark but not evil Tom, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Going to be long, Independent Harry, Intelligent Harry, M/M, Manipulative Dumbledore, Powerful Harry, Revenge, Romance, Slow Build, This story was was moved over from my Fanfiction Account, Time Travel, Tom is a tad bit Possessive, Wool's Orphanage
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-26
Updated: 2015-02-26
Packaged: 2018-03-15 08:50:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3440978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jaymarie102/pseuds/Jaymarie102
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry finds himself betrayed by the ones he fought so desperately to save. A need for revenge and escape leads Harry to a spell that sends him back to 1931, where a very jaded boy-who-lives meets a young Tom Riddle.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Harry used to have dreams of what his life would be like after the war and the defeat of Voldemort. He would imagine himself making off with Ginny, having troves of children, becoming an Auror, settling down later on to teach at Hogwarts, work in the ministry, or some such job. He would watch his children grow along Hermione and Ron's and would eventually grow old having lived a long, good, peaceful life.

Harry had many of those dreams.

But now as he stared into the fearful distrustful eyes of the ones he had committed his life to protect, he wondered how he could have ever been so foolish. After years with the Dursely's you would think the message of trust no one but yourself and keep your head down and just survive would have been drilled deeply enough inside his thick skull to stick, but somewhere along the way of false kindness, hope, and twinkly eyed old men, he had buried his resolve and convinced himself of goodness, truth and love.

What utter hogwash.

No, Harry knew better now, he could see Dumbledore's manipulations for what they were, a way to control his weapon and now that his weapon had run out of uses he was much too powerful to leave sitting around where he may develop a thought process of his own. Growling lightly, Harry looked up from his seat in Dumbledore's office refocusing his attention. "What are you saying Headmaster?"

Said Headmaster cocked his head lightly to the side and sighed, eyes still twinkling obnoxiously. "My dear boy I know life has been hard on you, but I simply cannot condone the choices you have made. You must speak for your actions."

"My actions," Harry shouted loudly letting out a burst of magic in his wake, "You mean the actions I took to save us all from a megalomaniac dark lord! Those actions?!" Dumbledore gave him a rather disappointed look for his outburst in an attempt to cow him. It only served to incense him further and he felt his magic coil and grow around him as he seethed in rage.

"Calm down, Harry my boy, there is no need to get so upset; you know the Dark arts and lost arts are illegal. You must face the consequences." Harry's eyes widened and he slumped in his chair before schooling his face into a perfect picture of blankness. The room's temperature dropped swiftly as the once enraged magic turned deadly.

"You intend to punish me for learning the dark arts and lost arts? The two things that allowed me to beat Voldemort? The things I spent years desperately studying so I could fight back against the death eaters and save the ones I loved…?"

Harry paused then, leveling a steely glare at the man he had once idolized. "You know Albus, I have begun to wonder who is truly more despicable, you or Voldemort."

With those words he pushed himself from the chair making a move to leave, when two Aurors burst in. "Harry Potter you are under arrest for the unlawful use of the Dark and lost arts. Step down and hand us your wand." Hardly blinking, Harry flicked his wrist causing the two men to fly backwards hitting the far wall of the office. He heard Dumbledore yell for him to stop, but without looking back, Harry Potter disappeared.

* * *

Moving quickly, Harry exited the Hogwarts wards, grabbed his wand, and disapparated. The familiar feeling of being pulled through a tube hit as he was unceremoniously dumped on the tile floor, barely refraining from falling. Harry sighed, moving around the old house he now resided in. The house had been one of the Potter properties that had been given to him upon his seventeenth birthday, along of course with the rest of his inheritance and the Potter lordship.

Looking around, he found the large tome he had read before Dumbledore had summoned him to his office to betray him. Flipping through the pages, he opened to a particular marked page and re-read the ritual listed there. This really could go horribly wrong. Not many people had tried the spell and the few that had hadn't lived long enough to remark it a success.

Sighing again, Harry let his head fall in his hands. What was it again that Fred and George had always been trying to teach Percy? …Ah yes, Carpe Diem: seize the day. Well, he supposed he didn't truly have much to lose. Lifting his head from his hands he called out, "Dobby!" The small wrinkled house elf appeared moments later, grinning happily at him.

"Oh master Harry! What can Dobby do to help yous?"

Smiling lightly back at him, Harry replied, "Do you remember the list of items that I showed you a few days ago? Did you pick up the things on it?" Dobby nodded enthusiastically and snapped his fingers, handing over a bag filled with a few large objects and a bucket of goat's blood.

"Yes Dobby gots everything Master Harry asked Dobby for!" Thanking him, Harry let him know he was dismissed and turned to the items he would need to perform the spell.

Working quickly, Harry managed to set everything up in a matter of hours. He now sat in a black robe in the center of a circle filled with runes, drawn in goat's blood. His wand was clutched tightly in his hand as he took a deep breath and began the enchantment.

"Sileo et reformandam."

Harry felt his magic swirl around him causing wind to erupt and the goat's blood runes to glow. All around him, the world began to rain in bright colors, drawing brighter and brighter until there was a bleak nothingness.

Groaning in pain, Harry sat up and rubbed his hands over his eyes before stopping abruptly and lowering them in front of him. Staring at his now child sized hands, Harry stood and made his way into a slightly busy street that appeared to be somewhere in London.

Meandering around, Harry found a newspaper stand and pulled one of the latest editions from the stack. Ignoring the articles he went straight for the date: June 21 1931.

It had worked.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry's spell works and everything is honky dory until he runs into a very tall and very annoying problem.

The spell had worked. Harry was now officially in 1931. Grinning at his victory, he took in the other effects of the spell. He was now around five, he summarized. The de-aging had been one of the rituals side effects, along with the fact he had been unable to take anything along with him. The Spell known simply as the renewal ritual, gave one a new life in a time of their choosing.

The ritual picked the most fitting soul in that time period and merged the spell caster's soul with the pre-chosen soul. Harry had found the spell while looking through the Black's family library in Sirius's old house. It had decidedly been a perfect way to escape his hellish life and start over, but upon reading more closely he found there were ramifications of using the spell.

This being that the mix of souls could possibly cause one to lose their identity. The text had said the soul with the stronger will would dominate, while the less strong-willed soul would blend in. Disappearing almost entirely, leaving only its previous memories behind. Harry had been somewhat hesitant at first, before deciding that even if he ended up lost and forever changed, at least he'd be free of his so-called friends and family.

He had intended to wait a while before casting it, so he could say his final goodbyes to the few he still cared for, but Dumbledore sicking the Aurors on him had moved up his timeline. Shaking his head, Harry cleared his thoughts. It was pointless to think of it now, he thought lightly. It was obvious Harry was still mostly himself. The memories of the boy who had resided in this body before were present somewhere in the back of his mind. He focused briefly on them and felt the memories unfurl, revealing his name to be Haydn Prince.

Eyes widening, he cursed, he was related to Snape! Well this is an interesting turn of events, he thought bewildered. From what he had gathered from his previous memories of this life, he was Snape's grandfather's bastard cousin. It appeared his Father in this life had an unsolicited affair with some woman from a small French pureblooded family. He had fallen in love with her after the affair and planned to raise the child with her. However, his father had died shortly after his birth, leaving him with his mother's family which had recently gone bankrupt. Having no money to take care of her child and no claim to the Prince's name, she had left Haydn with a family friend in hopes of giving him a decent childhood.

Those hopes appeared useless, as the family he had been left with were staunch supporters of Grindelwald and died in one of his raids. Leaving five-year old Haydn with no place to stay and not a single pence, stuck somewhere in the middle of London. Sighing, Haydn supposed this was just his luck. Setting the newspaper that he had been staring rather fixedly at down, he looked downwards to take in his current outfit, which consisted of a white button down, black shorts, and a pair of black dress shoes with white shin length socks.

He wondered what he looked like. Haydn hoped there was not too much of a resemblance to Snape. No matter how close the two of them had gotten in the years before the war ended, he still didn't want to look too much like the greasy haired potion master. Focusing back on the present, he decided Gringotts was his best shot. If he had any claim to the Prince name, then he would undoubtedly have at least a trust fund set up and could procure enough Galleons to stay in the Leaky Cauldron until he found a more permanent place to stay.

Moving swiftly, he made his way through the crowd of people milling around. No one showed him much attention which he supposed was somewhat of a blessing. Haydn didn't know how he would explain wandering around London without a guardian. He had almost made it all the way to the Leaky Cauldron before he ran into the first sign of trouble. A man dressed in what he remembered to be the old police officer uniforms of the muggle law enforcement was making his way through the crowd straight toward Haydn.

Deliberately quickening his pace, Haydn had almost made it to the turn off for the Leaky Cauldron when he ran into the legs of someone in front of him. Said someone turned out to be none other than another police officer. Well fuck, he thought bitterly, he really did have horrible luck. The police officer he had bowled into knelt in front of him offering him a little smile. "Hello little boy, what are you doing running around all by yourself? Where are your parents?" Staring up at the officer, Haydn gave his best attempt at a purely innocent face.

"Hello sir. My parents are just around here somewhere, I just got a little separated." The officer looked back at him holding eye contact for a moment before smiling sweetly again.

"Ah, so you're lost, son. Well my name is Andrew, what's yours?"

Attempting to look as put out as possible, Haydn gave a little pout and answered "I'm not lost! I'm just having a bit of trouble finding them is all, they said if I got lost I should just wait for them over there," he pointed to a bench off to the side of the flow of people, "and my name is Haydn, sir."

"Haydn, huh? That's a nice name. Well, let me tell you what how about we sit on that bench for a bit and wait for your parents to come?"

Wow he's a stubborn one. Turning his attention from Andrew to the ground and scuffing his shoe against the asphalt looking as contrite as possible Haydn answered, "I don't need to wait with anyone I'm a big boy! I can wait by myself."

The officer gave him a knowing look that made Haydn want to puke. "I know you think you can wait by yourself, but sometimes mean people come along and try to hurt people who can't defend themselves. So how about it Haydn, mind sticking with me until we find your parents?" He wondered what the chances of the man caving in were if he threw a tantrum right here in the middle of the side-walk. Sighing and changing tactics, Haydn decided his best chance was to wait until the officer was distracted and make a run for it when his back was turned.

Nodding his head a bit, he followed the officer to the bench where they sat in somewhat uncomfortable silence waiting for Haydn's 'parents.' It was nearly an hour later when the officer starts to speak. "Are you sure your parents know where to find you lad?" The man looks a little put out now. Shrugging slightly, Haydn burrowed a little deeper in the bench waiting for the officer to lose interest and leave him be. They ended up waiting for another thirty minutes before the officer stands and looks back at Haydn. "I really do have to get back to work."

Smirking to himself at the perceived victory, Haydn nods quickly "I'm sorry for wasting your time Mr. Officer. I'll just wait here, I'm sure my parents won't be long now."

The officer shakes his head. "Now wait a minute Haydn I can't just leave you alone here. I'm going to take you with me to a nice little place you can wait for your parents at."

Haydn stares a bit at the man realizing he is planning to dump him somewhere where he will undoubtedly be watched until his imaginary parents arrive. Cursing, Haydn turns and tries to make a break for it, only to find the officers hand clamping around his wrist and dragging him forward. "Now come along Haydn there's no reason to be afraid. I'm sure your parents will come and pick you up in no time."

The trip was made relatively quickly with Haydn subtly trying to escape the officer's death grip to flee before he's put into some sort of daycare. Around about the fifth failed escape attempt, the officer abruptly stopped causing Haydn to look up and see something far worse than any day care. They were in front of none other than Wool's Orphanage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos to Persephone-Gaia for looking this over for me.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haydn meets Mrs. Cole, Tom, and his roommate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you Persephone-Gaia for making sure my grammar doesn't scare anyone away!

Wool's looked nearly the same as it had in Dumbledore's memory. Its large dilapidated three stories were covered in dull red bricks cracked with age and abuse. Several sets of grime and dust caked windows also adorned the front of the building. Lastly, lying directly in front of the orphanage, there was a tall rusted metal gate with the orphanages named engraved on top. All and all, the place looked no more welcoming than it had before. Haydn swallowed loudly attempting once again to pry his wrist from the firm grip of the officer who had now begun to walk up the cobblestone steps towards the entrance of Wool's dragging a protesting Haydn behind him.

Firmly ignoring said boy's protest, the two arrived quickly at the front of orphanage. The officer raised a hand and knocked several times before stepping back and waiting for an answer. Haydn, who had now given up his futile struggle, stood at his side; eyes fixed firmly on the ground as he desperately attempted to think of a way out of this mess. A minute passed and soon a women, graying hair tied neatly back in a bun appeared. Her face wrinkled with age took in the boy at Officer Andrew's feet and sighed before gesturing inside.

"Another one I presume?" Andrew nodded before answering.

"He says he's only lost, but I can't stick with him all day, and I also can't just leave him by himself. So I was hoping you'd watch him, until his parents show up." The women nodded before looking down at the boy.

"I am Mrs. Cole; you will be staying here at Wool's until your parents come to pick you up." Haydn gave her a sharp look and nodded before returning his eyes to the ground. The officer released the boy's hand and waved goodbye before making his way to the door and exiting back into the streets.

The women now identified as Mrs. Cole gave one look at the young child staring petulantly at the ground and said, "You have no parents. I can tell an orphan when I see one. Lying is not good for the soul, child, it only leads to misery and suffering."

Haydn lifted his head and stared for a moment debating the merit in denying her claim before deciding it pointless and giving a small nod, "I'm sorry Miss."

"See that it does not happen again." With those words, she began to make her way forward stopping in front of a door, which Haydn presumed was her office as the name plate indicated. "This is my office; you may come here or to my adjourning room if there is a problem." Walking inside the room, she took a seat at the desk set in the center room and motioned for Haydn to take one of the chairs opposite of her. Sitting down swiftly, Haydn looked up to see her sorting through a cabinet before pulling out a blank file and setting it upon her desk.

"Okay I have a few questions for you before we can get you settled. What is your full name?"

"Haydn Xavier Prince."

"How is that spelled?" She asked, not bothering to look up from the file she was currently scribbling away on.

"H-a-y-d-n X-a-v-i-e-r P-r-i-n-c-e." Nodding, Mrs. Cole moved to fill the response in the appropriate section.

"Alright next question, what is your date of birth?" Doing the math in his head Haydn answered.

"July, 31 1926." Writing that down, Mrs. Cole cleared her throat and continued.

"Parents or Guardians?" Blinking at the directness of the question, Haydn answered truthfully.

"None." Mrs. Cole wrote on for a few moments before stopping and standing. She moved over to a cabinet and pulled out several items.

"Here are two pairs of trousers, shorts, shirts, and undergarments, one pair of pajamas, one jacket and a pair of gloves. A towel and bathing supplies will be supplied to you in your room."

She exited her office and began making her way upstairs without checking to see if Haydn had followed. Attempting to keep up with her long strides, Haydn nearly ran into the back of her legs when she abruptly stopped. Looking up he noticed they were in front of room 345.

"This is where you will be living for the duration of your stay. Unfortunately, we are currently full so you will have to share a room….Your roommate is a bit…different. If he does anything to you tell me immediately, is that understood, Mr. Prince?" She was looking at him imploringly; with a look of what he supposed was mild fear or something of that sort. It was the most emotion he had seen on her face since he had arrived here.

Haydn was beginning to have a sinking suspicion as to who his roommate was. "Yes Mrs. Cole." Mrs. Cole looked at him a moment longer before she reached forward and opened the plain wooden door in front of them and stepped inside.

The room was fairly bare, except for two beds pushed into either side of the room and one large wardrobe sitting against the back wall. Mrs. Cole stepped further inside and gestured to the right side of the room. "This is where you will be sleeping. The bottom two drawers and the right side of the wardrobe are yours." Pulling out a marker, she handed it to Haydn.

"Make sure you label all your clothes. The other children are all downstairs eating in the mess. The mess hall is located on the second floor at the end of the corridor. Breakfast is served at 8 o' clock sharp, lunch following at twelve and dinner is at seven. Be on time to meals or you will not be fed. Curfew is at nine, while lights out is at eleven. Do not be caught up after curfew or you will be punished. Welcome to Wool's Orphanage Mr. Prince."

On that note, she turned and left the room. Haydn stared after her for a second before setting his clothes down on the bed and starting the process of folding and labeling them. Once he was finished, Haydn made his way to the wardrobe and opened the bottom drawer finding a towel, toothbrush, and soaps. Labeling those as well, Haydn quickly folded his clothes and placed them in the aforementioned places. Finished, Haydn turned and read the small old style clock sitting on a bedside table next to the bed that Haydn presumed was his roommate's.

Noting that it was only seven fifteen, Haydn made his way to the second floor hoping to locate the mess hall. After about five minutes of wandering, Haydn noticed the sound of children laughing and made his way to the open door at the end of the hall. Looking inside, he saw a fairly large room filled with children eating and laughing. Moving forward, he walked to the small group of children who were still waiting in line for food.

Standing behind a boy who looked around twelve, Haydn slowly made his way to the front of the line where what he imagined what was supposed to be food was plopped down on his plate. Looking around the room, he noticed that most of the tables were full; not particularly in the mood to speak to a bunch of children, Haydn made his way to the only table that was not mostly full.

Taking a seat at the far end of the table, Haydn sat down dropping his tray of 'food' on the table with a thump. The noise caused the only other occupant of the table to look up from the book they were reading. Sighing, Haydn supposed he would have to make nice for the time being, and looking up fully prepared to dumb down his intelligence to a proper five-year old level, Haydn came face to face with none other than a young Tom Riddle.

"This is my table find somewhere else to sit." He blinked and waited a moment for the shock of seeing the tiny dark lord in front of him to pass. Once recovered, Haydn scowled.

"Oh? I was unaware you had claim to this table, your highness." Riddle, obviously a little shocked at being talked back at, recovered quickly.

"Look, I know you are new here, but mess with me and you will regret it. Just Leave me alone" The words were practically dripping with venom as Riddle glared back at him with such strength it would drive even the bravest child away.

But Haydn was not a child.

"Was that supposed to intimidate me? Nice try, but it will take more than a threat and a glare to scare me away. If I want to sit here I will." Done speaking, Haydn turned back to his meal and pointedly began ignoring Riddle. Ten minutes into his dinner and Haydn could still feel Riddle's eyes on him. Sighing, Haydn debated just leaving. He had eaten as much of the sludge as he could stomach and he really didn't have a reason to stay, other than to annoy Riddle further and as much as he truly enjoyed annoying Riddle, he admitted to himself that making enemies with Tom would be rather pointless as they would most likely end up working together sometime in the future. Preparing to leave, Haydn started at Riddles voice.

"Tom Riddle."

"Pardon?"

"My name is Tom Riddle." Blinking at the seemingly random introduction, Haydn set his tray back down on the table and stared at the boy across from him. Riddle's face was mostly blank, but Haydn could still make out some trepidation and what looked like to be some fear and a great deal of weariness. They were decidedly odd facial expressions for a five year old.

"Haydn Prince, it's nice to meet you Tom." Haydn responded, reaching forward and holding his hand out. Tom seemed surprised by this, but it passed quickly and he reached out and grasped Haydn's hand in a firm grip. Even in this small form and Tom's obvious young age, Haydn could still feel the copious magic flowing through him.

Tom released his hand before standing and lifting his tray. "You are new here, what room are you staying in?" Moving to stand as well, Haydn answered.

"345, apparently I have a roommate, but I have yet to actually meet them." Not true of course, Haydn was nearly positive the boy across from him would turn out to be none other than his allusive roommate. Tom made a face of pleasant surprise before confirming his suspicion.

"You have met your roommate seeing as that person is me. I was told someone would be rooming with me soon, I'm just glad you don't seem to be too much of a moronic child." Smiling at Tom's roundabout compliment, Haydn replied.

"Well, I'm glad I've made such a wondrous first impression." Tom smirked, clearly happy at finding someone who could actually understand sarcasm.

"Do you wish to retire; I will show you the commons and the baths." Slightly surprised at the seemingly nice gesture, Haydn followed Tom and disposed of his tray. He hoped at some point he could spend a bit of time in front of a mirror to see what his new body looked like. The mental image of a mini Snape was still running through his head and if he didn't check his appearance soon he would go mad, well madder than he already was at least.

Thirty minutes later after having a surprisingly pleasant conversation with Riddle and having a more in-depth tour of the orphanage, Haydn made an excuse to go off and use the loo, saying he would get a shower out-of-the-way as well. Grabbing his bathing supplies, Haydn made his way to the bathroom on his floor, noticing the room was empty he took a deep breath and walked in front of the mirror.

What stared back at him surprised him greatly. While he could see some similarities to Snape, Haydn would not have been able to tell they were related had he not known. This body had curly black hair (that seemed a great deal more tame than his previous potter hair), a thin but somewhat aristocratic nose, full lips, and fairly high cheekbones giving him an altogether an extremely attractive look, but what stood out the most were one pair of Avada Kedavra green eyes that had adorned his face for the last eighteen years.

The ritual had mentioned something about one trait of the spell caster making its way into their new body, but to be honest, Haydn had thought he would likely end up with Voldemort's scar adorning his forehead. He had always thought that to be the most noticeable and distinguished part of himself. Pleased that he had not turned out to be a mini Snape, Haydn made his way to the shower and quickly cleaned himself before dressing and heading back to his new room were one Tom Riddle resided.

When Haydn had first been dragged here, he had thought of simply escaping when the caretaker's backs were turned and leaving at the very first opportunity, but after discovering Tom living here, his plans had changed. If he and Tom were to become close, it would open many doors in the future. Alone Haydn was powerful, but with the help of one brilliant future Dark Lord Haydn would be nearly unstoppable.

Dumbledore would never see it coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Every time you comment, a Pegasus gets its wings.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Tom decides Haydn is his and how Haydn decides Tom should stop turning people green.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~this is parsletounge~

They had moved the bed into his room exactly four days ago.

Mrs. Cole had come in one day a few hours before lunch and placed it there, stating that the orphanage would soon reach a near max capacity and that Tom was the only child left without a roommate. The woman had seemed extremely reluctant to pair him with another child and had spent several minutes lecturing him and stating that if he did not behave when the child arrived he would be severely punished.

Tom, in response, had merely sent a sneer in her direction and returned to the book he had been reading. Tom honestly couldn't care less if some snot nose brat was going to be living with him. They would leave eventually anyway. They all left, whether because some family adopted them, or because they decided Tom was someone to be avoided, feared- it didn't matter- they would all still abandon him in the end because Humans were an illogical, spineless, unintelligent, selfish, species that Tom loathed to be apart of.

He knew he was special, somehow different than them, he felt it in his very bones and yet he could not escape his unfortunate humanity. He still craved companionship, kindness, acceptance….it sickened him. Tom wished he didn't feel anything at all, it would be so much easier.

Sighing far too heavily for a five year old, Tom set his book down, sent another glare at the bed set against the right wall of his room, and then began making his way to the mess hall for dinner. A few moments later, Tom entered the mess hall and made the familiar motions of waiting in line- procuring his food, sitting himself at his table, and ignoring the hatred and fear filled eyes of the children around him.

Tom pulled out the copy of A Midsummer Night's Dream he had nicked from one of the matrons and began to read. Completely submerged in the Shakespearean novel, Tom actually jumped when a tray was dropped on his table with a loud thump. Looking up in anger, Tom came face to face with a pair of brilliant green eyes. The owner of said green eyes plopped down in the seat adjacent from him.

Scowling, Tom assumed the boy was new or he would not have had the audacity to sit at his table. Intent on getting the boy to leave, Tom delivered a terse "This is my table find somewhere else to sit." Putting as much steel in his voice as possible.

The boy looked at him in what appeared to be surprise, before he frowned and retorted, "Oh? I was unaware you had claim to this table, your highness."

Shocked at the rebuttal, Tom took a moment to compose himself before glaring heatedly at the boy and filling his voice with as much venom as possible, "Look, I know you are new here, but mess with me and you will regret it.~ _Just leave me alone~_ " The last part of the sentence he hissed in the language he used to speak with the snakes that he sometimes found in the garden. Tom pushed as much of  ** _it_  **as possible, behind the words as well.

Everyone obeyed when he used _ **it**_. Further proof that he was better than the filth around him. Smirking at his perceived victory, Tom reached for his book fully prepared to go back to ignoring the existence of the children around him. "Was that supposed to intimidate me? Nice try, but it will take more than a threat and a glare to scare me away. If I want to sit here I will."

Tom stared in utter befuddlement. Impossible. There is no way this boy should have been able to resist  _ **it**_. How? Was this boy immune to  _ **it**_? Could it be possible that the boy was different like him? Could he use  ** _it_**  too? Tom watched as the boy went back to his food and studiously began ignoring him. The child looked to be about the same age as Tom, he had short curly black hair that just barely reached his ears, full lips and a thin long nose. All and all, the boy was very striking, but the most phantasmagorical part of the boy were his verdant jade eyes.

The boys eyes held a weary intelligence that Tom often saw when he looked into his own eyes. In so many ways, looking at the boy was like gazing into an inverted mirror. Tom could feel how alike they were. Tom wanted him. This odd green eyed child would be his.

"Tom Riddle."

The boy looked up startled, "Pardon?"

"My name is Tom Riddle." Tom watched the boy wearily. He hardly ever attempted to actually hold a polite conversation with someone his own age. Tom worried he would do something wrong and send the boy away like all the others.

To his pleasant surprise, the boy did not retreat he simply held his hand out and introduced himself, "Haydn Prince, it's nice to meet you Tom." Wiping the surprise at the kind response from his face, Tom reached out and took Haydn's hand in a firm handshake. Tom could feel  ** _it_**  flow through their hands at the contact and wondered if Haydn could feel it as well.

Moving to stand, Tom said, "You are new here, what room are you staying in?"

Haydn watched him for a moment before answering, "345, apparently I have a roommate, but I have yet to actually meet them."

Tom could barely stop the contented smile from breaking out on his face at the discovery. Covering his slip, Tom quipped, "You have met your roommate seeing as that person is me. I was told someone would be rooming with me soon, I'm just glad you don't seem to be too much of an imbecilic child."

Instead of becoming angry as most of the children would, Haydn merely smiled and said, "Well, I'm glad I've made such a wondrous first impression."

Tom smirked, pleased that his new friend was intelligent enough to notice sarcasm and respond in kind. "Do you wish to retire; I will show you the commons and the baths."

Haydn nodded quickly and followed Tom as he gave a small tour. Tom asked a few questions here and there but they mostly walked in silence. A little while later, they arrived back at room 345. Tom moved and sat on his own bed before returning his attention to Haydn who was looking at him curiously.

"Is something wrong Haydn?" Tom asked gesturing for Haydn to sit down as well.

Haydn seemed unsure for a moment, before taking a seat and casting his gaze back towards him. "You are being exceptionally kind. Why?"

Slightly taken back by the question, Tom pursed his lips and leaned back "I am simply attempting to form a friendship. As I said before, you seem to be more engaging company than the rest of the mindless children that reside here."

Haydn looked at him, apparently stunned with his answer, before his face was schooled and his features once again become blank. "You don't seem the type for whimsical friendships."

Tilting his head to the side, Tom answered honestly " I'm not usually, but you are different. I appreciate different, therefore I will make an exception to my usual rules"

Haydn smiled, "Well then I am glad I fit your standards. Do you mind if I run to the Loo? I want to go ahead and get my shower out of the way."

"That is fine." Tom watched as Haydn made his way to their shared dresser and pulled out his bath supplies.

"See you later then, Tom" Tom nodded staring at the closed door for a moment, before turning back to his book that he had abandoned in favor of speaking with Haydn.

Tom had a feeling that this was beginning of a beautiful friendship.

5 months later

They were going to be late, Haydn thought with a sigh. Curfew was in ten minutes and if they didn't make it in time the gates would be locked and he and Tom would be punished once again. Pulling the books they had procured from the library closer to his chest, Haydn quickened his pace and grabbed Tom's hand yanking the scowling boy along behind him.

"I don't see why you are in such a hurry Haydn. It's not as if we haven't been late before. Mrs. Cole will lock us in our rooms and not allow us out until she deems we have learned our 'lesson'. It's not that big of a deal- we spend most of our time there anyways."

Frowning, Haydn turned back and gave Tom a look. "I want to show you something tomorrow, and if we are grounded I won't be able to."

Perking up a bit, Tom asked "Show me something? This wouldn't have to be the same thing you have been mumbling about for the past month, is it?

Sighing yet again, Haydn nodded " Yes it is. Howev-" Before he could finish his sentence, Tom reversed their grip and began pulling Haydn behind him instead.

"Well then what are we waiting for!?" He said as he took off running, dragging Haydn along. Smiling at his antics, Haydn set into a run as well before allowing his thoughts to drift.

Haydn had decided to tell Tom about the Wizarding world.

He had been contemplating when to tell him ever since they became friends months ago, but had never found the right time. That was until Tom's most recent burst of accidental magic caused one of their fellow orphans skin to turn green, making Haydn decide that waiting any longer would be detrimental to the both of them.

Looking up, Haydn saw Wool's gates and checked his wristwatch. Five minutes to spare. Making their way up the steps, Tom and him started the trek towards their room. A few minutes later, Harry flopped on Tom's bed burying himself in the covers to ward off the cold November air. Tom scoffed, "Make yourself comfortable then."

Grinning, Haydn said "I will, thank you." Before rolling over onto his stomach to watch Tom pull out a book from the makeshift bookshelf Haydn had put together one particularly boring day.

"So are you going to tell me about this place you wish to take me or is it a surprise?"

"Well...It has to do with what happened to Lea Little." Tom froze and tensed.

"I did nothing to her." Haydn stared at Tom a moment, before casting his eyes to the ceiling. Tom was extremely defensive about his bouts of accidental magic. Haydn had only personally witnessed a few episodes, but from what he had heard from his limited conversation with the other children it was a rather common occurrence.

"Yes you did." Tom scowled, dark eyes narrowing into a glare he hadn't seen since that day in the mess hall five months ago.

"Oh? I did?" He sneered. "Going to start calling me a freak now too, Prince?

"No, Tom I'm not. I don't think you are a freak. I think you are special just like me."

Tom's glare turned into a look of curiosity. "Special?"

Smiling lightly, Haydn answered, "Yes special. Tom, what do you think of magic?"

Tom blinked. "Magic? It's just something from fairy tales."

"No, it is very much real, but only special people like you and I can use it. They call us Wizards."

Tom stared for a long moment, dozens of emotions filtering through his eyes, before he slowly made his way to his bed, eyes unreadable. "You are saying there are other like me? That you can do what I do?"

"Yes." Collapsing next to him, Tom buried his head in his hands.

"I knew I was different than them. That I was special." They sat in a moment of silence as Tom processed what he had learned.

"This place you want to show me, it is related to Wizards?"

Smiling slightly, Haydn responded,"Yes. It's called Diagon Alley. It's something of a wizarding shopping mall." Tom looked up, eyes filling with excitement.

"Do they have a bookstore?" Haydn let out a surprised laugh.

"You and books Tom!" Still laughing, Haydn continued, "Yes, they do have a bookstore."

"Good. Now tell me what you know of this Wizarding world." Relaxing back onto to the bed, Haydn laid down and began to explain about Hogwarts, his parents, and the world he grew up in.

"So the Prince's are an old line?" Tom asked eagerly, absorbing all the information Haydn was giving.

"Yes. However considering I was born out of wedlock and that my father is dead, I don't know if I have a true claim to the name. Tomorrow we will visit Gringotts and see if I was left any inheritance. While we are at it, we can check to see if you descend from a wizarding line or not." Haydn already knew that Tom was a descendant of Slytherin of course, but considering he hadn't even heard Tom speak parseltongue, he couldn't explain where he came about the knowledge.

"I thought you said I was a muggleborn? Are you saying I might actually have a wizarding family?" Tom seemed exuberant at the prospect.

"It is possible." Noticing Tom let out a yawn, Haydn said. "Now I will explain more tomorrow. If we are going to go to Diagon alley tomorrow, then we will need to get up early."

Tom frowned and then nodded, pulling the covers over the both of them and blowing out the candle on his nightstand. He and Tom usually slept in the same bed on unreasonably cold nights to keep warm. Heating systems were one of the few things Haydn missed from his own time. Rolling on to his side, Haydn said quietly

"Goodnight Tom."

"Goodnight Haydn."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For every review I name a raccoon. (that rhymed!)
> 
> PS. Tom uses the term IT to describe his magic.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haydn has a nightmare and Tom is not so secretly frightened by goblins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I named the Raccoon Rexemus. He is now the mascot of this story and tells ya'll to comment and worship him with satanic cookie sacrifices.

The world around him is a dark sea, lit only with one small multicolored ball of light. Curious as to what is going on, Haydn reached out for the tiny colorful orb hoping it might be of some explanation, only to have it to flutter away just out of reach. A second and third attempt revealed the same result. Huffing in frustration, Haydn once more tried to catch hold of the skittish light source employing all of his seeker skills into the movement. Haydn grinned in triumph when his palm connected.

However, the triumph was quickly whisked away when the second his hand enclosed the orb he was abruptly yanked forward with a feeling not unlike a portkey and was dumped rather painfully on the ground. Back tense, he glanced around himself only to feel a sinking pit of dread in his stomach as his surroundings came into better clarity. Haydn was in the chamber of secrets standing a few feet away from none other than a teenage Tom Riddle, pet basilisk dutifully behind him.

Panic filled him and he tried to run, but his body would not cooperate. He stood instead body moving through actions and memories completed long ago like a will-less marionette. Haydn attempted to close himself off and distance himself from the memory, but no matter how far he retreated into his mind he could still hear Tom's cruel laughter and his own rapidly beating heart fueled with adrenaline. The malicious laughter cuts off suddenly and with another tug behind his navel, Haydn found himself in the great hall listening to Dumbledore call out the champions of the Triwizard Tournament, hearing his own name and watching the angry mistrustful faces of his peers, Haydn wondered how he had ever been stupid enough to believe they had ever cared about him.

The next memory pulls him into the Burrow surrounded by loud gingers. Haydn internally cringed as he looks into all their smiling faces, ' _Lies',_  Haydn thought venomously, ' _it's all lies.'_

Haydn was forced to relive Sirius's death , ' _the pain just as unbearable the second time',_  the prophecy, ' _why did it have to be him'_ , and the ensuing backlash, ' _I have to win. I can't afford to lose',_ he repeated this to himself, _'my own personal mantra.'_

Another memory, and Haydn found himself desperately studying everything and anything. Relearning each world, remembering every thought process. He felt himself slowly falling back into the role of Harry Potter. He moved through the motions. Found help in Snape of all people. Together they found a book, inside it there was a single ritual. It would takes months to learn and Harry may not even succeed, but he had to keep going, had to keep trying. Harry was so very desperate he turned to the very black arts he despised.

A tug and Harry now stood amidst the bodies spawned from the war that is finally at it's climax, he had killed. He had fought. He he had lost. He knew that this is it. This is the moment that decides it all. Harry looked upward into the red eyes of his own personal demon and fires off his trump card, the curse that he has spent months studying and perfecting, his final weapon.

There was a blinding light and then death.

The war is over.

Voldemort is dead.

The memories shifted again and now he is crying, surrounded by the hateful glares of the very same family he once felt loved by. They throw hateful, spiteful words at him.

"How could you do this Harry?"

"How could you turn on us like this!"

"You are despicable."

"Everyone knows you are going dark."

"We hope they lock you up in Azkaban where you belong."

"We  _hate_ you"

Things began to fall apart, those he loved now despised him for saving them. He is stuck in a world of hatred and fear. Harry was lost. Sirius was dead. Remus was dead. Hermione hated him. Ron hated him. He was utterly alone, the only ones who still cared for him were the very people he used to loathe. Harry wished to be anywhere but here in this horrid world-he needs to escape he can't be here. He needs freedom. He needs...  _"Haydn!"_  Tom.

"Wake up you imbecile!"

Haydn sat up abruptly, disoriented eyes scanning the room. The orphanage, his mind, supplies him. A dream. It was only a dream. He stared at the ceiling for a moment before turning his head to the direction of an excited Tom. Rubbing his hands over his face, Haydn stares blankly forward taking in a fully dressed, perky Tom. It's so unnatural that Haydn wonders vaguely if he was still asleep. After pinching himself to confirm reality, Haydn quickly got dressed under the close inspection of an over eager Tom whose usual mask has flown away in his excitement of visiting Diagon Alley.

Ten minutes later and the two were wandering the London streets, heading to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom was oddly silent in comparison to his earlier effervescence. "You've gone quiet. Is something wrong?" Haydn asked in an attempt to sate his curiosity. Tom looked up from where he had previously been staring at his feet and blinked before frowning and running a hand through his hair. A nervous tick, Haydn has noticed that Tom is rather accustom to.

"I am fine." Snorting at the obvious lie, Haydn responded, "Oh you are? Then why were you glaring at the ground like its murdered your first born child?"

"You are far too dramatic Haydn. I was doing nothing of the sort. I was merely thinking of our options."

"Options?" Haydn asked, confused.

"Yes, options. It's not as if we can stay in that horrid muggle orphanage any longer. I mean, they must have some sort of magical orphanage, correct? I know you got stuck in Wool's because of some idiotic officer, but there must be a place for us to stay." Tom has obviously been thinking of this since their talk yesterday.

Haydn sighed "There is no magical orphanage that I know of and if we have no money then it will be very hard to find a place that will give us room and board."

Tom looked at him as if he had grown a second head ,"What do you mean they have no magical orphanage? What do they do when a child is orphaned?"

Haydn scowled, "They pawn them off to relatives or do nothing at all and allow them to be put in a muggle orphanage until they either come of age or are accepted to Hogwarts."

"That's ridiculous!" Tom stopped walking now, glaring stubbornly at Haydn as if he was responsible for the despicable way the ministry handled orphans. Sighing, Haydn stopped as well and leveled Tom with an even stare.

"Yes it is, but unfortunately there is nothing we can really do about it. If I happen to be entitled to any of the Prince's money than we can look into it, but I doubt it will do us much good really. Chances are we'll be stuck at Wool's until our Hogwarts letters arrive." Tom scowled heavily at him for a moment before nodding slowly.

"It is still utterly ludicrous that this ministry has no place for magical orphans, but I suppose there is nothing we can really do about it for now at least. Shall we continue to this Leaky Cauldron you mentioned?" Haydn nodded in agreement and began to walk again. A few minutes later, they rounded a bend and Haydn noticed the slightly rundown pub that could be none other than the Leaky Cauldron.

Despite the fifty something year difference, the building looked nearly the same as it had in the nineties. "Is that it?" Turning away from his observation of the pub, Haydn acknowledged Tom with a tilt of the head.

"Yes, we will have to ask the barkeeper to open the entrance for us."

Making their way inside, Haydn took in his surroundings. The place was fairly full. Wizard and witches sat amongst the tables and stool, some chatting quietly amongst each other. Others were being far too loud and rambunctious for the early afternoon. Looking to his left, he noticed Tom doing much the same. His keen grey eyes roaming from table to table cataloging away information for future use. Moving forward, Haydn stepped further into the establishment walking towards the bar when he noticed none other than a younger Tom was working.

"Hello Sir, would you mind opening the entrance for my friend and I?" The barkeep leaned over the counter slightly at his voice.

"Ah, didn't see you there lad! Now, no Sir with me, the names Tom, and I wouldn't have any problems opening the way for you and your friend there."

"Thank you very much Tom." Haydn responded with a perfect mask of politeness.

"Such nice manners!" The man smiled happily down at them before making his way to the entrance and tapping the the proper bricks on the wall causing it to shift revealing Diagon Alley.

Haydn stepped through first, followed by Tom who was wearing something between a gobsmacked and awed expression, which was quickly filtered away into his usually mask of indifference. "We should probably go to Gringotts first, then we can look around the shops if you like." Haydn said, making his way forward while dragging a still somewhat stunned Tom behind him.

"Yes, I suppose that would be wise." Tom replied, finally composing himself and removing his hand from Haydn's grip before matching his stride and looking around with a far more subdued curiosity. They walked a few more minutes with Tom asking the occasional question before coming upon the large marble building that was unmistakably Gringotts.

Smiling at the familiar building, Haydn made his way inside, Tom following a few steps behind him. At the sight of the Goblins, Tom's face remained blank, but his slight fear is given away by the whitening of his already pale skin. Haydn inwardly smirked at Tom's reaction, then made his way to the counter, and greeted the goblin residing behind it. "Hello, I am Haydn Prince and this is Tom Riddle, we would both like to take an inheritance test."

The Goblin sneered at the both of them for a moment before nodding and gesturing forward, "This way then." Tom and Haydn followed the Goblin in silence, eyes tracking the people milling around them. A moment later they found themselves in front of an office with a name plate that read Grindrick. The goblin now identified as Grindrick, lead them inside his office and took a seat behind a large wooden desk before rummaging through the desk's drawers and pulling out two blank pieces of parchment. Placing the sheets on his desk, Grindrick gestured to the seats across from his desk. "Take a seat, while I prepare for the inheritance ritual."

Nodding, Haydn and Tom took a seat in the specified chairs and sat patiently while Grindrick began waving his hand over the paper and chanting latin sentences under his breath. A few minutes later, Grindrick gave one final flick of the wrist causing the papers to glow blue for a moment before returning to their normal somewhat yellow colour. After handing each Tom and Haydn a sheet of paper, Grindrick reached into his desk once more, pulling out two small daggers.

"You each will need to make a small cut on your palms and let a drop of blood fall onto the paper. It will list whether or not you have any inheritance claims."

Haydn nodded easily, already having performed the ritual once before when he was seventeen, to claim the Potter Lordship in his old life. Tom, however, looked the slightest bit uneasy at the thought of slicing his palm open, but took the dagger nonetheless when Grindrick handed it to him. Smiling at Tom, Haydn ran the knife over his palm with nary a flinch before holding his hand over the parchment. The blood made contact and Haydn watched, entranced, as red writing began to reveal itself on the previously blank parchment.

Name: Haydn Xavier Prince (Pureblood)

Father: Xavier Izar Prince (Pureblood; Deceased)

Mother: Elizabeth Marie Augustin (Pureblood; Deceased)

Paternal Grandfather: Izar Maximus Prince (Pureblood; Deceased)

Paternal Grandmother: Amelia Westin Prince nee Greengrass (Pureblood; Deceased)

Maternal Grandfather: William Nexus Augustin (Pureblood; Deceased)

Maternal Grandmother: Lillian Marie Augustin nee Valerius (Pureblood; Deceased)

Maternal Uncle: Rexemus Marks Valerius (Pureblood; Deceased)

Inheritance:

Heir of Prince Family (Lord title may be claimed once of age if left uncontested*)

Heir of Valerius Family (Lord title may be claimed once of age)

Heir of Augustin Family(Lordship title may be claimed once of age)

Prince Family Vault: 60,567,345 Galleons; 300,320 Sickles; 20,000 Knuts (can be accessed once of age)

Prince Family School Vault: 20,534 Galleons; 5,063 Sickles; 2,000 Knuts (can be accessed at age eleven)

Valerius Family Vault: 160,234,500 Galleons; 500,345 Sickles; 100,982 Knuts (can be accessed once of age)

Augustin Family Vault: 55 Galleons; 22 sickles; 92 Knuts (Can be accessed once of age)

Augustin Trust-fund Vault: 86 Galleons; 13 Sickles; 17 Knuts (can be accessed at current age)

Haydn stared for a moment longer, processing what he had just read. He was rich! Like nearly Potter rich! Well shit, he hadn't been expecting that. Unfortunately, it looked as if he couldn't accesses a great deal of his fortune until he was at least eleven, but still this was far more than he could have ever hoped for. Looking to Tom he noticed a similar look of awed befuddlement on his friend's face, along with a darker look he couldn't decipher. "Find anything interesting Tom?"

Tom's head lifted from the parchment and without a word he handed it to Haydn. Accepting it, Haydn skimmed the paper and found both what he had been expecting to find and something he hadn't.

Name: Tom Marvolo Riddle (Half-blood)

Father: Tom Riddle Senior (Muggle; Living)

Mother: Merope Gaunt (Pureblood; Deceased)

Paternal Grandparents: Unknown

Maternal Grandfather: Marvolo Gaunt (Pureblood; Living)

Maternal Grandmother: Romena Gaunt nee Olviere (Pureblood; deceased)

Maternal Uncle: Morfin Gaunt (Pureblood; Living)

Inheritance:

Heir of Slytherin: (Lordship can be claimed once of age and if the magical rite is passed)

Vaults:

Slytherin Family vault: 650,064,234 Galleons; 55,00,00 Sickles; 72,000 Knuts (can be accessed once of age)

Founders Heir Trust Vault: 26,000 Galleons; 4,000 Sickles; 456 Knuts (can be accessed at age 11 )

Tom was bloody loaded as well! Well, if he passed this magical rite thing."Grindrick, what is a magical rite?"

Grindrick sneered before explaining,"A magical rite is a ritual which determines whether or not one is worthy of becoming the lord of a house. If passed, the Lordship will be obtained. If failed, the potential heir will be disowned."

"Disowned?!" Tom said loudly in alarm.

The goblin glared before repeating, "Yes, disowned."

Haydn paused, he had never heard of such a thing. When he had claimed the Potter and later Black lordship, it had all been fairly simple. "Is this magical rite common amongst families?"

"No, however a hundred years ago or so it used to be prevalent in pureblood families to assure the family's bloodline remained powerful. Nowadays, it's only used by the most stringent and ancient Family's."

Haydn nodded absentmindedly before turning to Tom who had a masked expression of apprehension. "Well it's nothing to be worried about Tom. You won't have to even think about it until you turn seventeen."

Tom stared at him for a moment, face unreadable, before the corner of his mouth twitched upwards into a smirk. "True enough, but regardless, I highly doubt I could be unworthy."

Haydn laughed for a moment before replying, "Oh of course not Tom, because you are ever so incapable of being unworthy of anything."

Tom puffed his chest out pompously, "Indeed. How astute of you Haydn."

Haydn, with the help of Grindrick, withdrew 20 galleons or so from his Augustin Trust Vault, before making off with Tom into Diagon Alley. They stopped at a multitude of shops, mostly just to browse, but occasionally making off with a trinket or two. Finally, the two arrived at Flourish and Blotts. Tom, practically bursting with excitement, took one moment to calmly acknowledge the store clerk, before he was off like a shot in the direction of Tom's one and only true love. Books.

Two hours later found them seventeen galleons poorer and ten books richer.

Later, as they returned home to the orphanage, Tom is as happy as Haydn has ever seen him and in that moment looking at Tom's rare smiling face, Haydn felt a sense of contentment he hasn't felt in years. Things were finally looking up. He has found his freedom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *There are other Princes still alive that could theoretically fight Haydn for the lord title. You will will meet them later on in the story.
> 
> The next chapter will have a time skip in to when they are eleven so no more kiddie Tom and Haydn. Every time you kudos or comment I teach a penguin to fly. 
> 
> So many thanks to the lovely beta Persephone-Gaia for looking this over.


End file.
